Stadium Astro highlights three key factors to the defeat of Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, now three-time runners-up at the All-England following a 21-18, 12-21, 19-21 loss against world number one pair Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho.
Unable to adjust to court conditions
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Chia-Soh started the match on the left side of the court, and were able to immediately get a grip on the game.
They were aggressive, quickly racking up the points with their smashes, going cross-court at the bodies of their South Korean opponents.
Both men also moved faster to the front court to intercept the returns and were able to rack up valuable points.
But as soon as they changed courts for the second game, the momentum shifted in the favour of Seo-Kim, who won comfortably.
When Chia-Soh moved back to their original location for the third game, they once again regained control with a 11-7 lead at the interval.
But once they switched courts, the world number two surrendered that lead again and seemed unable to cope playing against the drift.
Not seizing the opportunity with the lead
With a 12-7 advantage in the third game, the odds heavily favoured the Malaysians to end their All-England wait for the coveted silverware.
They had the opportunity to deliver decisive blows against the defending champions who had their backs against the ropes, but failed to capitalize on it.
One clear example came during a rally with the Malaysians leading 16-15. Soh fired a smash wide into an empty court, and after that smashed another shot onto the floor of his own court.
Fine margins decide matches, and these two incidents may have been the cause of their downfall.
Seo-Kim stayed calm & composed
One of the key factors of Seo-Kim’s dominance in the men’s doubles scene has been their innate ability to stay composed under pressure.
Even as they trailed to most parts of the deciding game, the South Koreans did not let their heads drop and played every shuttle calmly.
They anticipated Chia-Soh may be eager to kill off the shuttle, and played to their strengths by defending well and probing for mistakes.
Chia admitted the pair still have a lot to learn after this defeat, and one of the key takeaways will be the ability to stay calm like their opportunities.
